The person who consistently displays bold behavior will far out-perform the person who does not.
by Neal Whitten, PMP, Contributing Editor
PICTURE THIS: You are observing two equally talented and skilled individuals. One person has a consistent performance record of demonstrating boldness, while the other exhibits little or none. What is the distinguishing difference between them regarding their achievements?
The person who consistently displays bold behavior will far out-perform the other. A behavior of boldness helps propel a person beyond what he or she might otherwise achieve. In fact, boldness has such a profound impact on the effectiveness of one’s performance that I find it curious that this trait is not more talked about in the leadership and project management arenas.
What do I mean by boldness? Boldness is the act of responding to a situation in a manner that may be viewed as daring to some, but is essential to effectively address the issue at hand. By boldness, I do not mean being rude, reckless, insensitive, arrogant, or a bully. None of these attributes are acceptable to any of us … ever!
All too often, I hear, “I have all the responsibility, but I don’t have the authority!” This is not true! The problem is that most of us do not take the authority. We do little more than grab the tip of the iceberg in seizing authority, in behaving boldly. For example, when was the last time your boss called you on the carpet for exceeding your authority? It has been my experience that most people cannot remember a time. If you can, and you did nothing illegal or unethical, then you are to be applauded.
Let’s look at some examples of project manager behavior that is essential for achieving a consistently effective performance. This behavior, for many, can require various degrees of boldness. Do you see yourself in these examples? Are you sufficiently bold … or are you too soft?
- Passionately defends the right project plan to the project sponsor, executives, and the client(s). Lead the project team in developing, scrubbing, and professionally defending the appropriate project plan.
- Escalates to higher levels of management-within two workdays-project-related problems that are at an apparent impasse for resolution. Drive critical and potentially critical problems to a timely and satisfactory closure.
- Behaves as if you have the authority to match your responsibility. Take charge as if you own your domain of responsibility, as if you are the true business owner.
- Drives good project management practices throughout the project. Initiate and establish effective project management discipline across a project.
- Asks for help when needed. You will never know all that you will need to know. Deliberately seek out the answers when they are needed.
- Assigns tasks to the appropriate project members. Don’t hesitate to insist that the right project members are assigned to, and effectively working on, problems that affect their domain of responsibility.
- Makes decisions as they are needed; doesn’t delay or abstain. Your timely decisions are crucial to effectively drive the project to achieve its objectives.
- Holds project members accountable for their commitments and actions. Work closely with project members to instill a sense of commitment and urgency in their actions.
- Focuses daily on the top three project problems and their corresponding solutions. Avoid being constantly sidetracked on lesser issues at the sacrifice of working on and solving the most important project problems.
OBSERVE THE PEOPLE around you who are making positive change in their organizations or projects. Their actions require boldness. After a while, you may not think of these co-workers as bold, but simply as effective leaders. However, boldness is an essential element of all consistently effective leaders.